Devil in details of Trump's infrastructure plan

Matt Rourke / AP

This Jan. 23, 2017 file photo shows the Delaware River Bridge in Bristol, Pa. Pennsylvania Turnpike officials say the major bridge linking the Pennsylvania and New Jersey turnpikes is expected to remain closed for repairs for at least two more months, and they are still trying to determine why one of its steel trusses fractured. The turnpike commission told The Associated Press on Friday, Feb. 3 that the Interstate 276 span over the Delaware River could reopen in early April if a repair plan goes smoothly.

This Jan. 23, 2017 file photo shows the Delaware River Bridge in Bristol, Pa. Pennsylvania Turnpike officials say the major bridge linking the Pennsylvania and New Jersey turnpikes is expected to remain closed for repairs for at least two more months, and they are still trying to determine why one of its steel trusses fractured. The turnpike commission told The Associated Press on Friday, Feb. 3 that the Interstate 276 span over the Delaware River could reopen in early April if a repair plan goes smoothly.

President Donald Trump painted a sparkling picture in Tuesday night's speech of the infrastructure projects he envisions: crumbling roads will be repaired, deficient bridges rebuilt, and the airports he dismissed during the campaign as reminiscent of the Third World soon will be gleaming.

Comparing the effort he envisions with former President Dwight Eisenhower's undertaking to build the interstate highway system in the 1950s, Trump called for a $1 trillion "new program of national rebuilding." However, a Pennsylvania congressman cautioned not to expect $1 trillion in new money from Washington.

The details from the president so far are sparse: construction work on roads, bridges, tunnels, tunnels, ports and rails will be paid for through an unspecified mix of public and private dollars.

Still, it was a rare spot for applause Tuesday evening from Democrats in the House chamber, including U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, whose 17th District includes part of Northampton County.

Gov. Tom Wolf also cautiously praised Trump's infrastructure comments, saying that while details remain slim, he is "hopeful that the president will follow through on this promise."

What they heard Tuesday evening was unlikely to sway the minds of the new president's most vocal critics, including Democrats closely listening for signals on whether he'll...

Pennsylvania legislators came to President Donald Trump's first congressional address looking for policy details and answers.

What they heard Tuesday evening was unlikely to sway the minds of the new president's most vocal critics, including Democrats closely listening for signals on whether he'll...

(Laura Olson)

That optimism reflects how much a massive investment could mean for Pennsylvania, home to some of the country's oldest bridges and roadways.

Pennsylvania ranks second in the number of structurally deficient bridges within its borders, according to an annual report released last month by the American Road and Transportation Builders Association.

Roughly 20 percent of the state's bridges — nearly 23,000, or 2,000 in the congressional district that includes Lehigh County and part of Northampton County –— have a key element in "poor" condition or worse.

"We have tremendous repair needs," said Robert Latham, executive vice president of the Associated Pennsylvania Contractors, a state-based trade group for the highway construction industry.

Underlining the need nationally is a list of priority projects submitted by governors to the White House. The National Governors Association compiled the list of 748 preliminary projects that are close to shovel-ready or would directly create jobs, including seven from Pennsylvania, as a signal of what's already at the top of the wish list as an infrastructure proposal moves forward.

But even with emphasis on the issue from the White House and some bipartisan interest, significant questions remain: Where will the money come from and how much will there be?

Trump administration officials' comments to legislators, governors and others have focused on options such as approving new tax credits, which would be intended to attract more private spending on projects.

U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said Wednesday the $1 trillion figure offered by Trump may include private projects already in the works that he described as being hindered by regulations or a lack of government permits.

"It's not going to be $1 trillion coming out of Washington, D.C.," Shuster told a conference of state transportation officials gathered here. The Altoona, Blair County Republican said he has been part of small groups who have met twice with Trump at the White House on the matter.

Shuster named two pending Pennsylvania pipeline projects — the Constitution, which would cross through Susquehanna County in the state's northeast corner, and the Atlantic Sunrise pipeline, which would run from Lancaster County to Susquehanna County — as examples of private investments that could be unleashed quickly once government agencies sign off.

Democrats, meanwhile, have called for a $1 trillion package paid for by closing so far unspecified tax loopholes.

The size of the funding proposal and where the money comes from will be key, especially for Republicans like U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., who told reporters Tuesday night he'll be looking for the details on any infrastructure plan.

"I think you can make a strong case for a very significant level of investment in a wide range of infrastructure, but let's be clear: We already invest many, many, tens of billions of dollars every year from the federal government alone in various infrastructure projects," Toomey said shortly after Trump's address to Congress.

Toomey supports having a user fee, like tolls, on new projects, arguing such fees provide funding as well as separate the projects that are needed from those "just on some politician's wish list."

Latham said his group would like to see public and private funding options in the mix, including options to permanently shore up the federal Highway Trust Fund that Congress has scrambled to replenish with short-term options during recent years.

While he's "not optimistic that we're going to see buckets of money fall into Pennsylvania this construction season," Latham said he's encouraged by the ongoing discussions and said he wouldn't be surprised to see movement by this time next year.

The raucous congressional fight over Obamacare is likely to steal the spotlight in coming months, but infrastructure might not be too far behind in the federal pipeline.

Potential PA projects

Gov. Wolf's administration compiled seven priority projects for a nationwide wish list that the National Governors Association sent to the White House. Wolf's office says the list is not comprehensive, and is likely to change as specific details of an infrastructure package emerge.

• $265 million: Reconstruction of 1.75 miles of interstate highway, constituting part of a structurally deficient bridge deck area in Philadelphia.